Chair



' CHAIR Filed Dec. 51, 1937 5 s 2 28 227 m m Patented Aug. 29, 1939UNITED STATES CHAIR Charlie E. Platter and Orval It. Platter, NorthVernon, Ind.

Application December 31, 1937, Serial No. 182,889

4 Claims.

This invention relates to chairs broadly and is particularly concernedwith chairs of the adjustable reclining upholstered type.

Briefly stated, the ultimate aim of the present invention is to providea chair of the adjustable reclining type which may be adjusted with amaximum of ease by an occupant while seated or reclining in the chair,both the back and seat of the chair being simultaneously adjustablewhile maintaining such parts in the most comfortable relative positions,there being no springs or the like to interpose undue resistance to seator back movement in either direction.

Another object of the invention is to provide a chair of the relativelyheavy or upholstered type wherein the back and seat may be adjusted toany desired position simultaneously with a minimum of manual effort, andwherein the adjustment structure is relatively simple and involves noexteriorly-projecting manually operable levers, knobs or like parts,While at the same time a strong and rugged support is provided for theseat and. back.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages will become apparent inview of the following description taken in conjunction with the drawing,wherein:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view taken substantially on the lineI---!, Fig. 2, 01 a chair of the upholstered type embodying the featuresof the present invention, an alternate position of the back and seatbeing illustrated in dotted lines;

Fig. 2 is a transverse section taken substantially on the line 2-2, Fig.1; and,

-Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional View taken substantially on the line3-3, Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing in detail, the main stationary supporting frameof the chair is generally indicated at F, and in the example shown saidframe comp-rises a front cross member 5, rear frame member 6, sidemembers 1, 1a., 8, 8a,, and 8b, 8c and side uprights 9 and 9a, thelatter supporting arms or arm rests Hi and Mia. The

frame may be open or covered as desired, and

may be otherwise varied to meet manufacturing requirements for differentlines of chairs. On the base of the main frame is a seat frame or sillstructure made up of front cross pieces l I and i2,

side rails l3 and 13a, which also function as runners, and a rear crossmember Hi. The upholstered seat S which is supported by this sillstructure is preferably provided with cushioning material such assprings 15.

It will be noted that the seat frame or sill structure is mounted toslide forwardly and rearwardly on the stationary base frame F, gliderstrips or bearing blocks 16 forming bearings at the front of thestationary frame for the side rails or runners l3 and 13a.

A cushion ll may be disposed on the supporting seat S which at its frontis shown provided with a raised bead or welt I8, to prevent displacementof the cushion. This cushion may be bedded with springs or the like asdesired and as gen,- erally utilized in chairs of this type.

The back of the chair is generally indicated at B and comprises frameside rails 19 and 19a, joined by cross members 20. The lower extremityof the side rails l9 and I911. are each formed with an upwardlyextending slot 2!, note particularly Fig. 1, and cooperating with thisslot is a block or bracket 22 having secured therein and projectinglaterally therefrom a pin 23 which engages in the slot 2 l. The blocks22 are mounted upon and secured to the movable seat side rails or sillsl3 and 13a toward the rear extremities of the latter.

The back frame is pivotally hung and supported from the ruggedstationary side frame members 3b, to by means of pivot bolt hangers 24,and the rear end of the movable seat sill is pivotally connected to saidhanger bolts by straps 25.

A filler cloth or Web 27 is preferably connected between the rear of theback B and top of the adjacent frame member 5, so as to present an evenor unbroken contour when the back approaches or is in upright position.

The chair operates as follows:

When an occupant desires to move from a substantially upright positionas shown in full lines in Fig. l to a reclining position as indicated indotted lines in the same figure, it is only necessary to exertsufiiicent pressure on the back to slide the seat S with its base frameor sill outwardly, the latter having a sliding or gliding action on thebearing or glide strips l6 secured to the stationary base frame of thechair. As the seat moves outwardly, the pivot pins 23 are permitted freemovement in the slots 2 l, the back pivoting on the pivot bolts 24.Since the back is hung from the stationary frame pieces or members 8band Be, it turns about a fixed point and is held against bodily forwardmovement, and since the seat frame is also pivotally hung from the samepivot point, the seat tilts slightly as it moves outwardly and both theback and seat are maintained in their proper relative positions duringall phases of adjustment. The sliding pivotal connection betwen the backrest and seat frame in conjunction with the suspension of the rearextremity of the seat from the main frame independently of the backrest/permits the latter to be used as a propelling means for the seatwithout destroying its position of comfort. In other words the desiredrange of travel, or rearward and forward movement of the seat frame maybe maintained without throwing the back rest out of the desired positionwith respect to the seat and also without materially varying thehorizontal position of the seat. Since the links 25 are pivoted at therear end of the seat and in rear of the sliding pivotal connection2l--23, the maximum forward adjustment of the seat results in only aslight downward inclination of the latter, note the dotted line positionin Fig. 1. Another feature of advantage of the present invention is thefreedom of movement, both outwardly and inwardly, of the seat withrespect to the back, there being no binding action between the parts orresistance to movement by springs nor is there any noise incident to theuse of the latter. Whenever the occupant has brought the seat and backto the desired adjusted position, the weight of the occupant holds theparts to such position.

In order to insure the most efficient and satisfactory operation of thechair, it is desirable that there be a certain relative friction ratiobetween the bearing members or bloclm l6 and the seat frame side railsor runners l3 and !3a. In other words, there should be a certainbalanced friction factor at this point computed by considering theaverage weight of the occupants, as well as the weight of the chair seatitself, together with the amount of friction generated at the pivotalpoints of suspension of the seat and back frames. Experiments havedemonstrated that this frictional resistance may be more accuratelycontrolled by using certain types of material for the engaging bearingsurfaces. For example, if certain types of hardwoods are used for theblocks l6 and the runners i3 and I366, the bearing surfaces will becometoo smooth and the chair will glide too easily and will not stop or holdits position when the occupant desires to have it rest at a certainpoint.

In practice, we have solved this problem by utilizing a certain ratio ofbearing surface area in accordance with the particular characteristicsof certain types of bearing material. For example, using a bearing blockor strip having dimensions approximately 1 /2" x 1 /4" and a glide stripor runner of approximately 2 wide and 7 long, the bearing blocks orstrips function satisfactorily when made of poplar or wood having thecharacteristics of poplar. The side runners l3 and Eta. may also be madeof poplar or wood having like characteristics. 7

Actual use has conclusively demonstrated the ease of operation,ruggedness and yet withall relative simplicity of the improved chair.

It will be understood that the foregoing description together with thedrawing constitutes; an illustrative embodiment of the invention only,and that various changes in construction and design may be adoptedwithin the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In an adjustable reclining chair, a main stationary supporting frame,a seat and a frame for said seat supported at its front extremity forfree forward and rearward'movement in a substantially horizontal planeon said main frame, a back rest and a frame for said rest pivotally hungat an intermediate point to said main frame and at its lower extremityhaving a slidable pivotal connection to said seat frame and whereby whena pivotal adjusting movement is imparted to the back rest the seat frameis moved forwardly or rearwardly without substantially affecting itshorizontal position, and means pivotally suspending the rear extremityof said seat frame fro-m said main stationary frame.

2. In an adjustable reclining chair, a main stationary supporting frame,a seat and a frame for said seat supported at its front extremity forfree forward and rearward movement in a substantially horizontal planeon said main frame, a back rest and a frame for said rest pivotally hungat an intermediate point to said main frame and at its lower extremityhaving a sliding pivotal connection to said seat frame and whereby whena pivotal adjusting movement is imparted to the back rest the seat frameis moved forwardly or rearwardly without substantially affecting itshorizontal position, and means pivotally suspending the rear extremityof said seat frame from said main frame, said latter means being pivotedat one end adjacent the pivot point of the back rest with the main frameand at its opposite end being pivotally connected to the rear end of theseat frame in rear of the sliding pivotal connection of the back restwith the seat frame.

3. In an adjustable reclining chair, a main stationary supporting frame,frictional bearing means located at the front base portion of the mainframe, a seat and a frame for said seat supported for forward andrearward frictional gliding movement on said bearing means, a back restand a frame therefor including substantial vertical side members which.at an intermediate point are pivotally suspended from said main frameand at their lower extremities are provided with longitudinallyextending slots, pivot pins connected to the rear extremity of the seatframe and projecting laterally into said slots and whereby a slidablepivotal connection is provided between the back rest frame and seatframe, pivotal adjustment of the back rest frame serving to move theseat frame forward or rearwardly on its frictional bearing means withoutsubstantially altering its horizontal position, and hanger straps eachof which is pivotally connected at its upper end to the main stationaryframe adjacent the pivotal connection of the back rest frame with themain frame and at its lower end is pivotally connected to the rear ofthe seat frame in rear of said slot and pivot connection.

4. An adjustable reclining chair comprising a main stationary supportingframe including side members, a seat frame and glider or bearing meanstherefor, said bearing means being connected to the front base portionof the main frame and said seat frame being mounted for free forward andrearward gliding movement on said bearing means, an upholstered backrest and a frame therefor including side rails, hanger bolts pivotallyconnecting said side rails at an intermediate point to the side membersof the main frame, the lower extremities of said back side rails beingformed with longitudinally extending slots, pivot pins connected to therear extremity of the seat frame and projecting laterally into saidslots, and hanger straps which at their upper ends are pivotallyconnected to said hanger bolts and at their lower ends are pivotallyconnected to the rear end of the seat frame.

CHARLIE E. PLATTER. ORVAL R. PLATTER.

